The present invention relates to a method for measuring a storage frame according to claim 1.
Methods for measuring objects, in particular geometric dimensions of said objects are already known. For example, in the production of machine parts or the like, these parts are disposed on a separate place and are measured for inspecting its geometric dimensions and for detecting possible deviations from predetermined reference values. Thereby, the machine part can be measured by a scanner or probe and the measured data or dimensions are compared to the respective reference values. In case that the measuring device is a coordinate measuring machine, the measured dimensions may be transferred into coordinate data to be compared with reference coordinate data. A respective measuring method is known from the German laid open document 10 2007 034 168. Furthermore, a scanner for detecting the tridimensional structure of a surface and a method for using said scanner are known from German patent 10 2005 002 190. The reflections of light emitted by a light source to a surface of the object to be measured are received by a detector. The detector outputs a signal from which the distance of the lighted point may be derived.
In the production of sausage-shaped products, there is a great variety of machines being components of respective production lines. These machines may vary in size, in rate of production and/or in size of products. Thus, they also may vary in the kind of used rod-like elements, on which the sausage-shaped products are to be stored and in the kind of storage frames, to which the rod-like elements are to be fed or from which they have to be removed. Even if identical rod-like elements are used, depending on the kind of sausage-shaped products and their further treatment, like smoking or boiling for sausages as sausage-shaped products, the rod-like elements together with the sausage-shaped products hanging thereon, have to be placed at specific positions inside a storage frame. Moreover, there is also a great variety of storage frames used. Said storage frames may be standardized, but they may also be individual produced.
According to the manufacturer, the storage frame may vary in size regarding the above-mentioned dimensions and/or in the diameter of the wheels used. Moreover, in use, storage frames may be damaged, individually adapted or repaired. Thus, the trays on which the rod-like elements are to be placed may be modified and their position may be changed.
While inserting a rod-like element together with the sausage-shaped products hanging thereon into a storage frame, in particular by a robotic device, said rod-like element may butt against the storage frame since, for example, the size of said storage frame has been modified due to adaption, repair or damage. As a result thereof, the sausage-shaped products may fall off the smoking rod or may be destroyed.
To avoid the above described disadvantages, only one specific kind of storage frame is usable in conjunction with the robotic device. Moreover, to restore the exact dimensions of said storage frame by e.g. repairing, a damaged storage frame is very expensive.